Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Bubble Car to run at Llangollen Railway this weekend

A single unit diesel railcar
has been delivered to the Llangollen Railway for a final public appearance at
its Railcar Gala weekend due to be held on June 22-23 June.

The visitor is a class 121
railcar, popularly known as a ‘Bubble Car’, which was built in 1961 by the Pressed
Steel Company for use on suburban lines.

It has a driving position at each end
of the coach and seats 65 passengers.

Until recently it was used by Arriva
Trains Wales on the short shuttle service run between Cardiff Queen Street and
Cardiff Bay.

For this final appearance in
service at the Llangollen gala event the railcar has been loaned by Chiltern
Railways after it was withdrawn from service and delivered to the depot at
Tyseley, Birmingham.

It will be joined at the gala
by a similar single car unit, the class 122, as built by the Gloucester
Carriage & Wagon Works in 1958, and now preserved on the Battlefield line
in Leicestershire.

Evan Green-Hughes, chairman
of Llangollen Railcars Group, said: “Having two Bubble Cars together on the
Llangollen line will be a unique occasion and they will make an interesting
contrast alongside our home based fleet of two car units.

"We are very grateful
to Chiltern Railways for releasing the class 121 unit to us for this final
appearance.

"The opportunity to be able to operate two of the type at our gala
event has attracted a lot of interest from rail fans and we expect a big
attendance from those wishing the sample the 121 for a final time.”

George Jones for Llangollen
Railway added: “The visit of the single unit railcar is of interest in the 50th
anniversary of the infamous Beeching Report which led to the closure of the
line from Ruabon to Barmouth.

"When objections were made to the closure plan in
1964, one idea promoted was the use of the railcar to maintain the service at
reduced cost.

"However, British Rail management at the time declared that the
revenue earning potential of a single unit railcar would be insufficient to
cover the maintenance costs of the 52 mile line and the idea was not adopted.

"Ruabon to Barmouth remained a steam train operation to the end in January 1965
and no attempt was made to rationalise the railway or to introduce diesel
trains.

“This weekend visitors will
have the opportunity to see how the line might have operated post Dr Beeching
if it has been reprieved from closure.

"With a near half hourly service on the
7.5 mile route between Llangollen and Carrog, the railcars will provide the
opportunity to sit behind the driver and see the way ahead, something
travellers can not do on the national network."

"Certain trains during the
gala event will run on to the Railway’s line extension towards Corwen, which means visitors can see
what has been achieved so far at the railhead at Bonwm and learn about the plan
to reach Corwen East in 2013."

He added: “Sadly, the gala will also see
the last working of the popular Great Western Auto train as the steam
locomotive, Pannier Tank No.6430, is due to be withdrawn from service for its
ten year overhaul.

"Since it was rebuilt from a kit of parts at Llangollen and
returned to service in 2003, the engine has operated with two restored Great
Western auto-coaches and provided an opportunity to sample a real branch line
train of the 1940s.

"No.6430 has been much travelled during its ten year career
visiting many other heritage lines in Britain and becoming a splendid
representative for the Llangollen Railway. It is hoped the overhaul can be fast
tracked to ensure an early return of this popular engine.”

Details of the special
timetable for the weekend can be viewed on the Llangollen Railway’s website at:
Llangollen-Railway.co.uk